Need some A/C help

The wife's A/C fizzled out last summer, and it's starting to heat up down here in SC' so I decided to take a look at it. The system had lost its cooling ability and was just blowing warm air, so I hooked up one of those low side gauges with a can of 134a. The low side pressure was down around 20 lbs, which should have been around 40 lbs for the ambient conditions according to the manual. I went ahead and charged a small amount of freon into the system and the low side pressure shot up to 60 lbs instantly. At this point I stopped and went out and bought a decent gauge set like I should have done in the first place. As of now the system is running at 55 lbs on the low side and 125 lbs on the high side with no to very little cooling of the incoming air. The tubing after the orifice is cold and quite abit cooler than the accumulator. This according to the manual indicates a low charge condition, however the low side is high out of spec and the high side is low out of spec. Would is condition be caused by a partially blocked orifice tube or a failing compressor? :uhoh: Thanks for the input.:p

Usually a failing compressor will cause the blockage of the orifice tube and give the symptoms you have described. (Just went through this on my car). You need to replace the drier/accumulator, orifice tube and compressor. Be sure to flush the condenser, evaporator and all hoses while it is apart, and then pull a good vacuum on the system for about 30 min before charging. Follow the installation instructions on the compressor for oil and rotating the compressor before installing. The whole job took me about three hours with several 15 min breaks included. It helped to have it on a rack and remove the compressor from underneath!
http://www.autoacforum.com/messageview.cfm?catid=20&threadid=9178

Talked to my old man last night and he pretty much said the same thing. Another thing I noticed on the car was that the compressor discharge line is very hot. I almost burned my hand on it when I was poking around the other day. That definately is not a good sign. I've read in a couple places about installing an inline filter after replacing a bad compressor. Have you heard the same thing? I also noticed a lot of the new and rebuilt compressors recommend flat out replacing the condenser due to difficulty removing all debris from inside of it. Looks like I'm going to need a vacuum pump and an air compressor to do this job. It would really help to have a decent parts store around here too. Any suggestions are appreciated!:)

Normally the screen in the expansion device will catch anything that could be harmful to the new compressor. If the screen was broken, then it would contaminate the whole system. I used a pressure cylinder with toluene (brake clean) with a nitrogen charge to blow out the condenser, evap, and lines. (Any liquid left in the system will quickly boil off under vacuum)! I placed a clean white towel on the exit line of each part and got very few trash particles out of the condenser, lines or evaporator, not even enough to hurt a new compressor!! My expansion screen was clogged with debris, but was still in tact.

If I were you, I would flush the system (buy a flush kit) and replace the parts, then take it to a shop to be evacuated and charged. You did not say what model car you have, so I do not know if you have R12 or R134 or a HR6 or V5 compressor.


The links below will help you compare prices and shipping cost. I just went to my local O'Rileys and picked up what I needed, but I did give strong consideration to Alaska Air due to the package price for new "Factory Air" compressor and shipping cost. They also advertise on EBay and have a good review.

Alaska Auto Air (http://www.alaskaautoair.com/11684.html)
Automotive Air Conditioning Parts & Equipment - ACKITS.COM (http://www.ackits.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=black%20death)
O'Reilly Auto Parts (http://www.oreillyauto.com/EW3/DisplayTheParts.do?categoryCode=8&groupCode=17)
RockAuto Parts Catalog (http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/catalog.php)
Advance Auto Parts (http://www.partsamerica.com/)

1995 Buick Lesabre
134a and a HD6 compressor I believe

I looked at the compressor location today and I think I'll need to pull the battery and the radiator out. I really could do it with the radiator in but I think I'll be easier to just pull it out, it shouldn't take that much longer. What size wrenches did you use on the fittings? They are friggin huge and I'll need to get a larger wrench set. This job's going to be expensive, but my wife insists I get her a new car if I don't fix the A/C, so I'll be saving money in the long run. You gotta love women.:rolleyes:

I used a 12" adjustable wrench on all the fittings, none of them are a standard wrench size! They were not that tight. I did not remove the radiator or any other part except a small splash shield under the radiator and with some persuasion the compressor came out without much work. Getting it back in was a little more difficult since you are pushing against the weight of the compressor and trying to find the exact location that it came out. Just be patient and take a break if it doesn’t go the first few tries. Actually, I tried a couple of times without success, and then took a "beer break", after that it went in the first time. If you have a 95, it is an HD6 and R134. Sorry, I had a brain fart or a typo in the previous post and refered to the compressor as a HR6, my bad!

Alaska air has some great prices, but I'm not familar with either of the new compressor manufactures. Can anyone offer any insight?

New Compressor APCO BRAND $255.00
New Compressor VALEO BRAND $215.00
Remanufactured Compressor $ 175.00
New Accumulator $20.00
Freight by UPS $20.00